I’m Mark Lane, and I own a shop in Omaha where I build custom furniture. Bespoke furniture. Made-just-for-that-odd-space furniture. What-you-want-but-can’t-find-in-the-store furniture.

I started building furniture for myself in 2000 when I bought my first house. I didn’t like the quality that was available at the mega furniture mart, plus I had a strong do-it-yourself itch. My first piece was a telephone stand out of unpainted poplar with doweled joints and a knothole that I prominently displayed on the top. The stand held a corded land-line telephone and phone books. I no longer have that house, a land-line telephone or any phone books, but I still have that stand. I’ve thought several times about finally painting it, but I don’t think I ever will. It’s a testament to my early achievements, and it’s great the way it is.

That’s not to say I haven’t upgraded my skills. I never again built a piece using only doweled joints, because I found them fussy. I turned to mortise-and-tenon joinery and taught myself numerous ways of producing it, and since then I’ve mastered all kinds of other tried-and-true joinery techniques. And design elements. And finishing skills.

I like building interesting furniture for interesting people. What do you need?